


Mangled

by petite-neko (petiteneko)



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Depression, Grief/Mourning, M/M, Paranoia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-04
Updated: 2016-10-13
Packaged: 2018-05-18 06:15:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5901454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/petiteneko/pseuds/petite-neko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Life can take a bite out of you, chew you up, and spit you out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, the parts of this story will take place under two different PoV's. The odd chapters will be Link in third-person, and the even chapters will be in first-person, of another character.
> 
> And yes, Link's chapters are meant to be choppy and messy.

At first, it was pain. Then betrayal. The denial. Then anger. Oh. The anger.

Perhaps one day it would be forgiveness.

But he doubted that it would come any day soon.

.+++.

That anger fuelled him. Despite everything that he had learned, despite being cautious and level-headed, it was that anger. At him. At _her_. At _them_. At everything.

None of this was fair.

But the anger gave him the strength he needed. It was that anger that helped him get up when he thought he could no longer. It was that anger that put the force behind his blows. It was that anger that kept him going that moved him to that final blow.

But then, came that chilling numbness. That cold, cold acceptance.

(He was still angry. He was still hurt and in pain. He still felt betrayed. But it felt easier to be numb.)

That was easier to bear.

.+++.

Sometimes the numbness scared him. Sometimes it _terrified_ him. Because, what did it matter that Termina was going to get crushed by the moon? Who cared if people suffered and died?

(He knew that, deep down, he did. He knew that he _should_ care, but it was easier to not. It was easier to push it all down, and forget it all.)

But he did his mission. Because he knew he would only hate himself in the end.

~~He would hate him.~~

.+++.

Hatred.

It wasn’t just anger. It wasn’t just disappointment. No. Pure, furious **hatred.**

It flowed through him, as if it were the blood in his veins. As if it were the very oxygen that he breathed. It was the very essence of his being. It drove him, it commanded him, it ordered him.

And he listened. He listened to it as he drew blow after blow, as he sliced through the tentacles that whipped at him, or the magic cast at him. As he battled the creature that was within Majora’s Mask.

But, even though it did, the creature before him was not wearing the mask of Majora.

_Blue eyes. Blond hair. A peaceful smile._

And, as soon as he could, Link threw off the mask. It horrified him.

~~He couldn’t be numb anymore.~~

.+++.

_Keep it._

Not even the Happy Mask Salesman wanted it. He didn’t want the horror that he held within his hands. He didn’t want it in his possession.

(Perhaps it was because he had Majora’s Mask. That he didn’t want the two of them so close together. That this one was the only thing that could defeat the other, and somebody needed to have it.)

He didn’t want it.

Even just holding it put chills down his spine.

But, he would. If only to be safe.

.+++.

Fear.

In the form of nightmares. In the form of a twig snapping. In the form of people and their offerings.

‘Come here.’ They would say.

He could only hear the betrayal in their voice. Could only feel as their _lies_ tried to wrap him into a seductive cocoon. He could only see just how _empty_ their promises were.

And the child would run.

.+++.

Mistrust.

Nowhere was safe. Nobody was exempt. Not Saria. Not the Deku Tree. Not Malon. Not Ruto. Or Darunia…. Impa and Nabooru were neither either.

It _hurt_ Goddesses! Did it hurt!

_He could hear the whispers. He knew he was being paranoid in thinking it came from his sack. From the mask within it. But those voices were still there. Telling him ‘no.’_

He was _alone_ but he had nobody to go to.

_He was too wounded to._

.+++.

A cave. In the middle of nowhere. By the sea. Somewhere. He knew where. He would not forget this place. Forget its whispers and its promises.

~~Promise, promise, promise. All it did was promise. Of a freedom. Of no more pain. Of release.~~

He began to suspect that maybe, the Fierce Deity was far more dangerous than Majora…

.+++.

The nightmares eased up, but the fear didn’t. He was far too used to seeing people with masks on. He was too accustomed to protecting himself.

(That’s what he was doing right?)

No more. Not again. **Never** again.

~~He didn’t know if he had a heart to break.~~

.+++.

The years passed by and the young boy turned into a young man.

But that was all that had changed.

The anger was still there. ~~The hatred.~~ As was that fear, that cautiousness, but as the years went by he got better at hiding it. The pain too, was a still a poignant memory.

The numbness, too, occasionally reappeared. When some jobs had unfortunate endings. Or something unforeseen happened. (For Link had become a mercenary of sorts. A sword for hire – although for jobs that were never a shade darker than grey. He would not be hired to kill.)

His hands were crimson – but that wasn’t anything new. _How many_ things had he killed by the time he left Termina?

Epona was his only companion.

He couldn’t trust anybody else.

.+++.

Songs would haunt his dreams now. Not the monsters he faced, not the horrors. Not Ganondorf. No just songs.

And they hurt the most.

.+++.

He avoided Hyrule like the plague. He avoided her lush green fields. Her sparkling blue waters. Her rich brown mountains. Her lively forests. Her blazing deserts.

All Hyrule was to him was a bad dream.

A nightmare.

Sadness.

Anger.

Nothingness.

Hyrule was the embodiment of his horrors.

And so when he accidentally happened upon it…

He screamed.

.+++.

Out. Out. He wanted out.

(But he had fell. From a cliff. Ended up in the water and floated away….)

He couldn’t remember how he had come here.

(He didn’t have a way out. Termina. Termina. His mind screamed. But how? Where? Those memories from so far ago were vague and misty.)

Nor how to get _out._

.+++.

“ _Hero?!_ ”

He didn’t think he would ever hear that word again.

_It boiled. Deep down within him. Stronger. It was getting stronger._

It couldn’t be. No. It was a lie. A sham. A façade. No. He wouldn’t believe it.

In fact, he couldn’t. No. He refused to.

~~He could still hear those whispers…~~

“…What are you **doing** in that outfit Zelda?”

_Cold. His words were cold. But that was the only thing that cooled the boiling **rage** within him._

~~The only thing that numbed it.~~

“…I see she never told you. Come here.” He said.

_Foolishly, he believed him._

.+++.

Real. He was real. Sheik was not a mask. He was not the princess. They had not betrayed him.

For the first time in _years_ , he smiled.


	2. Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as pointed out earlier, this is in Sheik's PoV.

There was something strange about the hero. Certainly, I could understand his apprehension when I first encountered him. I could understand the hurt that I could read on his face, and that anger that had been radiating off him. I could completely sympathize with his cold tone.

What I couldn’t though… in fact I couldn’t even describe it. It was perplexing, and concerning.

.+++.

He never wanted to be in the castle. To the fields, he’d beg. What about here, he would suggest.

But never in Castle Town.

It also seemed that, aside from me, Link didn’t open up to anybody. (And even then, could I say the way he acted around me was _truly_ opening up? The way he said things, the way he avoided certain topics…. He was being elusive. Secretive. Hidden.) But I wouldn’t press it. I would give him time, because it looked like he needed it.

He would cling to me as well, as if I was the only thing keeping him stabilized, and that, too, was concerning.

Just _what_ had happened to him during these years apart?

Why had he changed so much?

But I could only wait.

.+++.

“Hey Sheik! Glad you could make it!”

The smile on his face was endearing. It had been a few months now, although still Link hadn’t seemed to really make anymore friends. But he seemed happy. He sounded happy. He looked happy.

Perhaps he was just a mostly antisocial kind of guy?

(I never seemed to read that on him in the other time however. He was bubbly, happy, _innocent_ back then. It only furthered my suspicions that _something_ had happened to him since I had seen him in the desert.)

While I was concerned, I did like Link’s company. Zelda, too, insisted that I make as much time for him.

So I always agreed.

“Of course Hero.”

He grabbed my hand and dragged me along to _somewhere_.

“Look.” He said with a shushing motion, gesturing to a nest.

Perhaps, nothing special would have been evoked, but the place was dark. It looked as if only death roamed there, but in despite of it all, life still flourished.

_Was he trying to tell me something?_

I nodded at him, a smile in my eyes before he pulled us away.

We settled in the shade of a tree, and I could see him relax.

_But there was **something** wrong about his pose. No. Link wasn’t fully relaxed. Tension. Somewhere. Somehow. But why?_

I reached over and placed a hand on his shoulder. I didn’t know how, but I wanted to calm him. I wanted to help him.

I was the only one who could.

And he flinched before blinking – as if _remembering_ where he was and who I was – then he smiled and placed his hand on mine, and leaned towards me.

My chest hurt.

.+++.

As I watched him, my concern would only increase. When I wasn’t there…

Link wasn’t himself.

When he would practice against the wooden dummies with wooden swords… the poor sword would break.

I often caught him meditating.

He also avoided Zelda. Purposely.

_Was Zelda why he always wanted to leave the castle?_

…But why?

.+++.

“Sheik.”

I turned at the sound of my name.

“Yes, your highness?”

She shook her head. “It isn’t highness that I need from you. Something… there’s something ailing Link.”

I nodded.

“Not… physically, but there’s this… shadow that lingers around him. I know not what its cause is, but…”

“Understood.” I nodded again, my concern growing only that much more.

.+++.

“Hero, what were you doing before you returned to Hyrule?”

That form bristled.

_So it **was** something that happened between then and now…_

“Small jobs, helping others here and there. That’s how I earned my money anyway.”

_Cold. Those words were unusually… cold._

I reached out my hand and squeezed his. “I see.”

Was it because it was when Link thought me to be Zelda? That’s why Link didn’t want to talk about it? That he didn’t wish to remember those feelings that once were brimming just under the surface?

_But I was here now, wasn’t I?_

I bit my lip. Was Link’s offense at the issue because _he had feelings for me?_ Certainly, it would make sense – especially in the way he now clung to me. In the way that my potential ‘revival’ had sparked hope into those blue eyes? It would explain the pain. The suffering…

_Granted, I wasn’t at all **opposed** to the idea. I, too, liked the hero, probably more than I **should…**_

“What are you going to do now?”

A shrug was his only response.

.+++.

Or, was it the war that did this to him?

Was it the war that caused such a weight in his eyes? The atrocities of back then? The horrors?

I know that it happens to warriors. I know the effect it could have on people. I, too, had my own little bouts, but had mostly moved past them. I was able to say that, yes, the past was the past, and was able to move on.

But, Link was only a child thrown into an adult’s problems. (We _all_ were, but Link was the least prepared. He was the most innocent out of all of us. He had to learn to fight without training. He had to kill without any mental preparation…)

Was _that_ it?

~~But then what did it have to do with Zelda?~~

.+++.

And so I pushed my boundaries a little. Closer, I needed to get closer to him. Even know he wasn’t _open_ to me I was the only one he was willing to talk to, or even really interact with. He didn’t look at me in the same way he did with Zelda, or that cautious gaze he held towards others. He relaxed a bit – even if it wasn’t wholly – around me and only me.

Why?

And he let me get closer – physically at least.

“Why don’t you hang around the other guards?”

Another shrug. “They don’t interest me I guess?”

Then I leaned in a bit – and I couldn’t deny the little _thrill_ it sent through my veins. “But _I_ interest you?”

He laughed softly, and gently moved me a little so he could get up. “I suppose you could say that.”

It was something. Not enough, but a start.

.+++.

Zelda’s expression was sullen every time I had to shake my head at her expecting and curious gaze.

But I couldn’t push him. I don’t know what it was that held the Hero back. I don’t know why I was the only one that was allowed close enough.

But I needed to find out.

Before that darkness consumed him.


	3. Part 3

The caress of the others hand, it haunted him.

In good ways. In bad ways.

But in forbidden ways.

.+++.

Happiness. It was an emotion he had not truly felt in a long, _long_ time.

That joy in your stomach bursting to fill your chest and your cheeks and your mind.

Yes. _That_ joy.

It filled him whenever he heard the other laugh. Whenever he even just saw the other. Being in his presence….

_It soothed the burns._

.+++.

His hand. His shoulder. His head. His arm.

That hand, it burned.

_But not in a bad way. No in a good way. It made him want for more. Again. No. Don’t stop. Come back._

But he couldn’t say that. He couldn’t admit that.

_And Sheik’s expression in his eyes was overwhelming._

.+++.

He liked his proximity. He liked the questions and the curiosity. He liked that _concern_ that he could see when he declined to answer.

When he reverted to that _cold_ and _numb_ state.

(Again, easy. It was easier. Made thing manageable. He couldn’t afford to be overwhelmed. Not again. Never again. Not by this, or by that.)

But Sheik didn’t like numb.

Neither did Link. He knew what it could do. What he could do.

~~It made those whispers more audible.~~

.+++.

How long had it been? How long since he had fallen off that cliff? Since he ended up in the river that took him to Hyrule? Since he had discovered Sheik?

Weeks? Months? A year even?

~~A blur. It was a blur. Everything. Time, seasons, people…~~

All that mattered was Sheik.

It’s all that could.

.+++.

When he could feel it bubbling, he found an outlet. He couldn’t let it get too big. He couldn’t let it get too heated. He knew. He knew what it did.

It was slow. Steady. Always there.

The more time he spent here, the worse it got.

~~And always, it would whisper…~~

.+++.

Screams. He could hear screams. Yelling even. Fighting. Somebody was fighting.

He covered his ears. No. Enough. Stop. Please.

His heart raced. His blood boiled. His head spun. Just stop. No. Please.

“…Hero?”

He looked up from his bed, to see the Sheikah at his door, a weary expression in his eyes.

“Can I just…”

He nodded, and moved over on his bed.

That was the first time Sheik held him.

.+++.

Afraid.

Fear.

It was an echo of the earlier fears. Perhaps even the source of it.

_Sheik._

He was afraid of Sheik.

(Of his promises, of his smiles, of his laughs. Of what could be. Of what was.)

He was afraid of losing it all.

But he couldn’t have it either.

~~And it was **her** fault.~~

.+++.

Link welcomed the fear. He welcomed the terror and the agony. It was the only way he could deal with it. (He couldn’t go numb. No. Sheik worried then. Sheik was concerned then. He couldn’t let the other see. He couldn’t let the other know. No. He couldn’t.)

He welcomed the nightmares.

It was better than the _dreams._

.+++.

He shouldn’t have met Sheik.

He shouldn’t have been happy.

He knew this was going to happen.

It was inevitable.

There was nothing he could do about it.

And quite frankly, it **pissed** him off.

~~He wanted to. He wanted to. But he couldn’t. He hoped. But no. It, too, was impossible.~~

.+++.

There were more screams, but from what he could hear, there were sobs too. Pleads even. That’s what they sounded like. And apologies.

But why was Sheik apologizing?

And always, he’d come to his room when he finished, holding the other close.

.+++.

His fault. This was his fault. He knew it. It could only be his fault. Certainly they weren’t like this before he came.

~~But that meant it was her fault too.~~

His fault. His fault.

_That was when Sheik kissed him._


	4. Part 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops now its gunna be 6 chapters

Confusion. I was confused. Why had he--- why was…

It didn’t make any sense…

One moment he was kissing me back, he grabbed my tabard – as if to pull me closer – and then it just… stopped. He froze, his eyes widening in fear, and that hand that promised _so_ much pushed me away. (I couldn’t describe the action. Desperately perhaps? It wasn’t gentle, it wasn’t violent, but urgent? Not reluctant? Or perhaps it _was_ both reluctant and forceful and the result was sending me these mixed messages?)

And I stared at him with that confusion in my eyes. None of this made _any_ sense…

As I did I noticed that form trembling. I watched as his emotions wreaked havoc in his eyes before he looked away.

“No…”

It _almost_ sounded as if he wasn’t talking to me… (Or perhaps… was he talking _both_ of us?)

I didn’t understand it. This. _Any_ of this. For everything until now told me that _yes_ he wanted this. _Us._ The way he would welcome my closer proximity. They way he would even _move_ closer to me at times. His smiles when I touched his shoulder or held his hand…

So _why?_

(Was he denying himself? That _yes_ he wanted it? That he somehow convinced himself that he couldn’t?)

His shaking had gotten worse now, and Link was furiously tossing his head back and forth in silent protest along with his vocal ones. “No. I can’t. I-I-I…”

My heart lurched for him. ( _What? What was bothering my hero? Why was he so distraught? I didn’t understand. I **want** to understand. Tell me, please tell me Hero: What ails you?_ )

I tentatively reached out for him but he backed up.

“ **NO!** ”

My hand retracted, hurt.

“Hero?”

“Please. No. Don’t. I-I- _this_ can’t…”

His words, they hurt. Hurt more than Zelda’s disappointment or her angry frustrations…

(Trying, I was _trying_ , but she wanted results now. Except it didn’t work that way. _Link_ didn’t work that way.)

I didn’t know something could hurt _this_ much…

“Why?” I tried, Goddesses knows I did, to keep that pain from my voice. I kept my distance, respecting his wishes.

He curled up in a ball on the bed, shaking even more.

…It sounded like he was crying. (He only cried once before. When he finally had enough proof that I was real and _this_ time I couldn’t comfort him.)

Then he moved – so rapidly that I couldn’t do anything – out of the room and he smiled sadly at me.

“You’re too good for me.”

I don’t know if I will ever forget that tear-streaked face, no matter _how_ our relationship turns out…

.+++.

I had done something horrendous. I had undone all of the careful work and accomplishments I had done with Link. He avoided me now as much as he avoided Zelda. I pushed him too far, too early. (But _would_ there have ever been a right time for this?) And even though I recognized the last few notes of the song he played I couldn’t bring myself to follow. (I was afraid. Of precisely what I didn’t know, but… Of Link? Of rejection? Of the pain? Of his _expressions…_ ) But I was the only thing that could save him. Even if he thought he didn’t deserve it.

I just needed to regain that strength. For _both_ of us…

.+++.

“Link!” I had been following him all day, despite his efforts to avoid me. “Just, dammit! Can’t we just _talk?!_ ” I looked up at him with a pleading look in my eyes.

That look seemed to catch him off guard and I ran over, grasping the sleeve of his shirt to hold him _here._ (But being careful to avoid touching his arm.)

“I _just_ want to talk. I won’t do anymore more. I promise.” I admit, I _wanted_ more, but I would only talk. “So do I gotta keep holding onto your sleeve, or **will** you talk with me?”

I didn’t like that defeated expression on his face.

“Very well.”

With those words I let go of his sleeve. (The way he pulled it away and cradled it hurt more than I would care to admit.) I wanted to sit, move, or _something_ but he was looking at me with expectation. (It was _so_ cold…) I fidgeted.

“We don’t have to end it this way…” My words were soft-spoken and I looked away, unable to look at his face or to read his expressions. “There…” I swallowed the heavy, foul-tasting words, “doesn’t have to be an _us._ I didn’t give you an ultimatum back then Link, I was just… declaring my desires, ones I _thought_ you shared…” I swallowed again, my chest hurting, “in a way I thought would only work. But, it seems… it seems that I was,” my arms felt like lead, my lips stone. Hard, it was so hard to admit it. To say it. “wrong.” I took a few deep breaths, still refusing to look at him. “And, that’s fine. It… hurts, yes I won’t deny that, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still be friends…”

My hands were clenched in my tabard and twisting the fabric while I waited for his response.

“So you don’t mind-”

I had to stop that thought process and I looked up – regretting it immediately – and I saw that _fear_ , that _pain_ and that _**guilt**_ on his face and I inhaled sharply. “I’m going to be completely honest with you Link. I… I like you – perhaps even love you – and _yes_ I will mind. _Yes_ it’s going to hurt knowing that I cannot be with you, and I _will_ be jealous if you find another, but if I had to choose between that or not having you in my life at all, I would choose that in a heartbeat. I would go through this pain, the anger and jealously because my love for you is not just romantic but platonic as well. Your happiness matters to me and I _want_ to help you. Even if that means I cannot share it with you. Even if it means that _another_ person will be there making you laugh at inside jokes. That I won’t be able to see those special smiles reserved for the one you love. Even if I am limited to you just as a friend.”

I was panting now, I just wanted to hide, be along. Quiet. Anything but _this._

“I doubt that you…” I missed the rest of his mumble. “I, I suppose if you… are okay with this…”

I nodded. “I…. should probably go see the Princess now. I… haven’t seen her at all today and she’s probably wondering where I am…”

When he nodded, I wondered if he knew that that wasn’t the _real_ reason for my departure. I waved farewell to him, heading off to the library.

.+++.

“ _What_ did you do to him?”

To be honest, I had been avoiding Zelda just like Link. I knew she wouldn’t like how… things had turned out with him.

I looked away, not wanting to face _her_ emotions as well. “We had a… disagreement.”

 _That_ was putting it lightly…

“Well go fix it! The darkness it’s… it’s _spreading_ Sheik. And I fear if we don’t get to him soon, we _never_ will…”

_She looked so tired. So weary…_

I bit my lip under my cowl. “I-I’ve tried. He… seems to be alright with our… current arrangements. I… think.”

I wasn’t going to tell her how much agony this cost me.

.+++.

The more I thought on her words, the more I came to a sickening conclusion. 

_It wasn’t too early. Maybe… I was too **late.**_

Maybe it had already been by the time I found him unconscious on the shore of Zora’s Domain…

And we – _none of us_ – realized it. Until now.


	5. Part 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry and oh gods, now the ending is open… what am I even doing. Really I’m so, so sorry.
> 
> ON ANOTHER NOTE: OH MY GOD. OKAY. I HAVE TO ADMIT. I BULL-SHITTED THE TITLE AND SUMMARY. SERIOUSLY. IT WAS ‘OH IT KINDA FITS’ WELL GUESS WHAT? WITHOUT EVEN INTENDING TO, NOW THEY MAKE PERFECT SENSE.
> 
> Enjoy this piece of shit

Pain. She? He? It? Whatever pain was, was a friend by now. And, taking into account of Sheik's reaction, the only one he truly ever will have. He knew, more than anything, just what he was doing to Sheik. He knew just how much it hurt.

He was doing it to himself.

But it had to be done. There was just no other option.

.+++.

He couldn't decide which he preferred - the burning or the yearning. The acrid taste or that endless hunger.

They both ate away at him however. It was just a question of which would devour him first, or which one would take the final bite out of him.

He couldn't drag Sheik down with him.

He would drown.

.+++.

Every time Sheik smiled it hurt. Every forced laugh. His very presence hurt.

~~There was a reason he avoided him.~~

But what was excruciating was the way that hand or arm would move and twitch when he said something, when he tried to comfort or console him. The way the warrior would restrain himself, when he truly had no reason to.

(But Link couldn't allow it. He couldn't. This wasn't to be.)

He wanted it. Those fiery touches, the heated expressions...

~~_And that kiss!_ ~~

But Sheik deserved better.

.+++.

The yelling stopped, but now pleads and sobs were in its wake.

“Please!' The princess would cry out.

Sheik never came to his room anymore...

.+++.

Another old friend came back: Loneliness. This, too, he embraced with open – if reluctant – arms. Because it was better than that alternative. Better than that false hope. Better than the lies. The betrayal. The anger.

He couldn't do that to them. 

~~Even if they had done that to him.~~

.+++.

As much as he tried to not admit it, he missed it. Missed _Sheik._ The way his eyes crinkled when they smiled. That pure, uncensored laugh. That intimate closeness just between the two of them.

He didn't say anything back then, but words were not the only way one could open up - and he had noticed the gates had been wedged open a moment to late.

Now it only left a gaping wound in his side, craving to be fixed.

~~He couldn’t be.~~

.+++.

Every time the other bid him farewell he wanted to reach out. Beg him to wait. Come back. Don't go. Stay. Please. Stay.

_I want you with me._

But every time he held his tongue in check. He knew. He knew it couldn't be.

~~No matter how much Sheik was proving that he **was** important.~~

.+++.

More. More. His mind and body told him. It warmed him. It freed him from that cold, dark cavern that was the numbness. He wanted more of that heat.

It was soothing. It was calming. It wasn’t slowly corroding him from the inside out.

~~It almost seemed to fix him.~~

Almost.

.+++.

Soon, that itch became too much, that urge too strong, and it was his hands that were twitching, it was his arms that would move before they stopped.

Maybe Sheik had a boat with him.

Maybe he wouldn't drown.


	6. Part 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is killing me

I didn't like the looks on his face. I didn't like seeing the agony warp his features. And oh, I hated how it warped mine.

But, I would change that. I had to.

They both depended on me to.

.+++.

I would do anything and everything for this man, I realized. Yes, I loved him, in all definitions of the word. That his happiness was mine, and damned or not, I **would** prove to him that he was alright.

(There were so many signs pointing to it. That, yes, Link wanted there to be an us. The words he used when he declined me, the way he avoided me, even that mumble I never fully heard. Now, too, I knew he hoped I hadn't but I saw the way he would stare longingly when I reached out instinctively, that silent conversation before he sadly looked away in defeat. It wasn't just that either...)

And the way he was attempting to come back to me meant progress. But I would not force him. I would do naught but watch and encourage.

Perhaps, maybe I wasn't too late after all...

.+++.

The logical side of me was protesting, but I was feeling hope. For Link. For his happiness. ~~For us.~~

I wasn’t going to push him, but you could say I was impatient. I wanted those smiles again. I wanted to feel his warmth. His everything.

I loved him dearly.

But I waited. I allowed him the space he needed, the time to build up his courage. I wouldn't rush him into it this time. At least now, I knew what I was getting into.

.+++.

"...Hey, Sheik, what was with all of your poetry before?"

He had gotten into the habit of asking me questions now. Funny, how our roles were now reversed. But I wouldn't deny him this. Or anything.

"I was merely reminding you of each one of the respective sages." If I said those words now... well the connotations there! At least Link _knew_ now but it still made me blush ever so slightly as I imagined guiding Link with these feelings...

"I knew very little of Link, Hero, but everything about the Hero of Time. Even mere observation will not tell one of how the other is." A small smile graced my lips. "And while much of you is still a secret, being with you has allowed me a broader prospective of you."

My hand twitched again. It had become a habit to just... touch his shoulder when the urge called, it was hard to break it.

I could see his hand twitch too...

"Is that why you still call me Hero?"

I blinked, he noticed that?

"Because you still see me as an enigma?"

I laughed softly and a small grin crept onto my lips. "Perhaps, Hero." And I let my gaze linger on him a little bit longer than necessary.

That pout was absolutely adorable.

.+++.

She was happy. I could see it in her eyes. She had stopped begging and screaming at me to fix him.

I wonder... what did she think of him to care so much for him?

"It's receding." The tears in her eyes were ones of happiness and relief. "I... I don't know what you did Sheik, but keep doing this."

I reached over and squeezed her shoulder. "I'm just letting him be himself." With those words, I left her chambers and bid her a good night.

I bit my lip. I dearly missed the times where I sought comfort in his proximity. Not that I missed the arguments, or her demands why he was getting worse, or what was bothering him, or why I hadn't made any success. No, I missed holding him close. I missed that... intimacy.

(It was the only way to describe it.)

I glanced longingly towards the door - only to see blue eyes peeping out at me.

I froze.


	7. Hiatus

I'm here to confirm that this story is officially on a hiatus. Sorry due to a lot of personal things I don't feel comfortable writing. I had been trying to get back into writing but as of right now that's impossible until I feel better.


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